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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. season — in sport
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. spell — a short time
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. clip — a video
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. tear — to rip
  11. clip — for paper
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. stand — to bear
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. spell — letters
  16. clip — to cut
  17. season — of the year
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. tear — from crying
  21. spell — magic
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bass — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com